Recently, Zagat launches their 2008 Shanghai survey. Reviewer Kim-Tien Huynh took a jaunt over to the press event at the Four Seasons to check out the launch and hear more about Zagat's 2008 survey results. Here's her report below:

The results of the Zagat Shanghai Top Restaurants and Hotels were shared with the food and dining press of Shanghai. For those asking, "The what?", Zagat is the most world's leading provider of consumer survey-based leisure content, providing reviews on restaurants, bars and hotels in over 100 countries. For Shanghai, it is an online survey filled out by 2,037 surveyors rating restaurants and hotels. Unlike other tourist-oriented review publications which drop by the city for a day or two and purport to "know the scene," Zagat reviewers are people like you and I (if you sense similarities with dianping.com, Zagat was, in fact, the model that dianping has sought to emulate.

Tim and Nina Zagat, founders of the Zagat Survey, announced the results which, for most part, were not astonishing. Winners were well-established figures on the Shanghai scene. Reigning supreme, sushi specialist Hanagatami took the honors for both Top Food and Top Service. Shintori came out as "one of the most stylish places in town" with the Top Décor. M on the Bund, followed by Jean-Georges and T8 ranked first, second and third as the city's "Most Popular" restaurants. Dongbei Ren comes first for "hearty" dumplings.

Since the last survey done three years ago, the dining scene in Shanghai has exploded and is the one of the world's most dynamic markets where restaurants and clubs pop out of the ground like wild daisies. This growth is reflected in the consumption habits of its residents, 92 percent of whom state that they eat out regularly. Chinese food still comes out as the "favorite cuisine" (though is noticeably under-represented in their top categories) followed by Italian and Japanese. Recently, Zagat's results show that over the past few years, perceptions of the dining experience have shifted, favoring healthy and non-smoking environments--poor service and smoking make up to 52 percent of the reported "irritants" when dining out.

As for hotels, Grand Hyatt remains the most popular among the survey participants but Four Seasons earns the honor for Top Overall with their awards for Top Dining and Top Facilities. The St. Regis came in second with Top Room and Top Service. However, with the arrival of Le Royal Meridien, Hyatt on the Bund and chic boutique hotels such as Jia Shanghai and The Mansion Hotel, these results will probably seem less up-to-date than one might hope though they do make an attempt to cover the lack of coverage on the latest spurt of boutique hotels with a quick acknowledgement of this growing trend in the survey overview.

Personally, I have always been skeptical of surveys. When compiling the answers, insufficient answers were issued a rejection, taking some restaurants out of the run--but what is sufficient? Nevertheless, no matter what the survey may say, the Shanghai dining scene is indeed a very dynamic one, though, in my opinion, the best references are still provided by the local magazines and websites--Zagat may have a bit of catching up to do, but I think they intend to make a real effort in covering the Shanghai scene in the future. By Kim-Tien Huynh

Here are the top results from the Zagat survey. If you want to participate in a survey on your home turf, don't forget to vote for your favorites in the City Weekend Reader's Choice Awards.

TOP RESTAURANTS

Best Shanghai Restaurants

1. M on the Bund
2. Jean Georges
3. T8
4. Din Tai Fung
5. Laris
6. Simply Thai
7. Crystal Jade
8. Blue Frog
9. Element Fresh

Top Food

1. Hanagatami
2. Gu Yi
3. Vedas
4. Jean-Georges
5. Din Tai Fung
6. The Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo
7. Palladio
8. T8
9. Crystal Jade
10. Danieli's Italian Restaurant

Best Buys

1. Dong Bei Ren
2. Vegetarian Lifestyle
3. Di Shui Dong
4. Nan Xiang
5. Moon River Diner
6. Bao Luo
7. Wagas
8. Din Tai Fung
9. Element Fresh
10. Whisk Choco Cafe

Top by Cuisine

1. Chinese - Gu Yi
2. Continental - Mesa & Manifesto
3. Eclectic - Yi Cafe
4. French - Jean-Georges
5. Indian - Vedas
6. Italian - The Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo
7. Japanese - Hanagatami
8. Thai - Lan Na Thai

TOP SHANGHAI HOTELS

Most Popular

1. Grand Hyatt Shanghai (Pudong)
2. Four Seasons
3. Portman Ritz-Carlton
4. St. Regis
5. Pudong Shangri-La
6. The Westin
7. Le Royal Meridien
8. JW Marriott
9. Hilton
10. JC Mandarin

Top Overall

1. Four Seasons
2. St. Regis
3. Pudong Shangri-La
4. Grand Hyatt
5. Portman Ritz-Carlton
6. Le Royal Meriden
7. The Westin
8. JW Marriott
9. The Regent Shanghai
10. 88 Xintiandi

Top Rooms

1. St. Regis
2. Grand Hyatt
3. 88 Xintiandi
4. Four Seasons
5. Pudong Shangri-La

Top Service

1. St. Regis
2. Four Seasons
3. Pudong Shangri-La
4. Portman Ritz-Carlton
5. Grand Hyatt

Top Hotel Dining

1. Four Seasons
2. Portman Ritz-Carlton
3. Pudong Shangri-La
4. The Regent
5. St. Regis

Top Facilities

1. Four Seasons
2. St.Regis
3. Pudong Shangri-La
4. Grand Hyatt
5. Le Royal Meridien